Easy Gooey Butter Cake

Easy Gooey Butter Cake

What you will need:

1 Box yellow cake mix

1 stick melted butter

4 eggs

1 8oz cream cheese

2 cups powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350.  Lightly grease 9x13 pan

Mix together cake mix, 2 eggs, and melted butter.  Pat mixture into pan.

Mix cream cheese, powdered sugar and 2 eggs.  Pour over first mixture.

Bake for 25-30 minutes.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar while still hot.

Told you... Easy!  I even used the same bowl to mix both mixtures.  

The hubs is a huge fan of gooey butter cake.  This recipe got 2 thumbs up from the family.  

One kiddo told me it was ridiculously good.  I guess it's a keeper. 

Jif Mocha Cappuccino Cookies

When Jif came out with their new Mocha Cappuccino spread I immediately thought about making cookies with it.   I had seen the Nutella recipes and I knew this would be to die for!   Chocolately brownie deliciousness mixed with coffee?   What more could I ask for?

Here's what you are going to need:

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1¼ cups Mocha Cappuccino JIF
4 tablespoons butter (softened)
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup milk
powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 375
Mix Jif, butter, and sugar together.
Add in eggs, vanilla, and milk until well blended.
Slowly add in salt, baking soda, and flour.
Roll into balls.
Roll balls in powdered sugar.
Place on parchment paper covered cookie sheets.
Lightly press them down.
Bake about 10 minutes.

My Nutella crazed kids preferred these cookies to the plain Nutella Cookie.
They are delicious!  Enjoy!

Nutella Cookies

I have been wanting to try this recipe for a while now but haven't found the time.  I have never tried Nutella but my kids LOVE it.  When I first told my oldest about these cookies he was in awe.   He was wondering why I hadn't made them yet.
It's a really simple recipe with very few ingredients.  I added a bit of baking powder and milk to my recipe.  I just felt like I needed a leavening powder and then the milk to help mix everything into a manageable dough.

1 cup Nutella  (about one 13 oz jar)
½ cups Sugar
1 cup All-purpose Flour
1 whole Egg
pinch of baking powder
about a teaspoon of milk

Mix Nutella, sugar and egg together.
Then mix in the flour and baking powder (optional)
Use milk if you need something more to thoroughly mix your dough.
Roll into balls.  Place on parchment paper covered cookie sheets.   Press down balls with the palm of your hand.
Bake at 350 for approximately 8 minutes.   Let cool on sheets for 2 minutes then place on a rack to cool completely.
Yields about 24 cookies

These cookies are pretty yummy.  I'd never tried the Nutella until I tried these cookies.  Yumm...  I'm sure these will be a regular in our baking line up.  The oldest was pretty impressed.  They are almost like brownie bite cookies.

Taffy Apple Pizza

Attention all friends and family:
Everyone that asks me for this recipe.  Here it is!

This is in no way my recipe.  It is an old Pampered Chef recipe.

What you need:
1 package (20 ounces) refrigerated sugar cookie dough
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1 8oz cream cheese softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 medium Granny Smith apples
1 cup lemon lime soda
cinnamon
1/4 cup caramel ice cream topping
1/2 cup peanuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350.  Roll out dough on your pizza stone or cookie sheet (raised edges).   Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned.  Cool.
Blend peanut butter, cream cheese, brown sugar, and vanilla together.
Spread onto cooled cookie.
Use an apple corer/peeler/slicer to prepare your apples.  You could also peel and slice your apples or chop.   I used pampered chefs corer, peeler, slicer.   Then quarter.   Dip apples into soda to prevent browning.
I like to dry my apples off a bit on a paper towel (optional).
Arrange apples on your cream cheese mixture.
Sprinkle lightly with cinnamon.
Drizzle with caramel ice cream topping... Let's be honest here.  I do not measure this.  Just pour it on!
Sprinkle with optional peanuts.  I usually leave these off.
Cut and serve!

2 tips:
1. It's helpful to loosen your cookie off the pan after it cools and before you dress it.
2. This recipe does not store well.  It gets soggy.  I only make for gatherings when I know it will be eaten that night or day.

This time I doubled the recipe and used a 12x17 bar pan.  It made my cookie thicker than it should be but I wanted a covered pan.  I usually use 2 16 inch round pizza stones.
BEWARE:  people will fight over this dessert.  Or maybe that's just my friends and family?!  Enjoy responsibly!

Homemade Pizza Pockets

Homemade Pizza Pockets

I've been trying to do more freezer cooking since I no longer buy the prepackaged frozen foods.  

Here's another good recipe to help you fill your freezer.  

Start with making pizza dough.

5 cups all-purpose flour, or as needed

2 envelope Fleischmann's® RapidRise Yeast* or 2 Tablespoons 

3/4 teaspoon salt

2 cup very warm water (120 degrees F to 130 degrees F)

4 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil

Mix your yeast with the warm water.  Let the yeast work for a couple minutes then add your flour and salt.  Lastly I add in my olive oil. 

While I let the dough rise I browned a pound of sausage.   You could also substitute hamburger or ground turkey. I added approximately a cup of pizza sauce.  If you want to add vegetables this would be a good time to mix them in.  

Turn your pizza dough out onto a lightly floured counter.  I added some cornmeal for texture and flavor.

Then I just started rolling out little pieces of dough.  

To the dough I added cheese.  I used shredded mozzarella.

Pepperoni

and my sausage mixture.   

Fold the circle over and crimp the ends with your fingers. 

Bake for about 15 minutes at 400 degrees.  

Let them cool on a rack.

I put some in the fridge for that night and the rest got wrapped in individual paper towels and put in ziploc bags for the freezer.  

I kept my left over pizza sauce for dipping.  

The only thing I think I will do differently next time is use a block of mozzarella instead of shredded.  It may stay together better.  I got about 24 out of this recipe.  

Either way, this recipe is a keeper.  You can do many different variations.  Enjoy!

Cookie Dough Truffles

Cookie dough is one of my all time favorite things.  When I make cookies I'm lucky to actually BAKE any.  This recipe is just my thing!  

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles

You'll need:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup (2 sticks) room temperature butter 

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup milk

1 cup mini chocolate chips

Chocolate candy coating 

directions:

Beat butter and sugars and in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add milk and vanilla. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt and mix,   Stir in chocolate chips.

Cover and chill dough until firm.  Form dough into 1" balls and arrange on a baking sheet lined with waxed paper. Place sheets in freezer and let chill for 30 minutes.

Melt chocolate candy coating and dip your cookie dough balls.  

Store in fridge in an air tight container.  

Homemade Ham and Cheese Hot Pockets

Well it's here.  The end of the school year!  Most people celebrate it.  I have mixed feelings.  I like spending time with the kids.  I like late nights with no bedtimes.  BUT... I like having the house to myself.  I have my own schedules.  The kids being home thow off my groove!  

Not to mention the kids will be eating me out of house and home.  I have two teenage boys and one overgrown boy/husband.  These boys eat alot! I spent a little time today trying to stock the freezer with some grab and go foods.

I used the dough recipe from Howdoesshe for buttery rolls found HERE.  

Let the dough rise then divide into 4 sections.  I cut each section into 6 pieces of dough.

Roll out into circles.  Add ham and cheese.  

I also made turkey and cheese.

Wet the edges to help them stick together.  

Let the dough rise.  Then bake at 350 degrees for about 18-20 minutes.  

Let them cool then wrap individually and place in freezer bag.  

Freezer cooking: soft tacos/ burritos

Today I did a little freezer cooking.  What's freezer cooking?  It is when you cook ahead and freeze dinners or parts of dinner.  Freezer cooking works great for busy families.  I like to double recipes when making dinner and freeze the other half for a later date.  

There's plenty of food in my house but if my boys have to put two things together they think there's nothing to eat.  I try not to buy premade processed frozen foods even though that's what my kids want.  One way to get them to eat a little better is by making your own ready to heat and eat foods. 

To make burritos I browned hamburger meat and made into taco meat.

After I let it cool down for a bit I spooned even amounts onto my shells along with cheese.

I don't add anything else as other things don't freeze and reheat well.  Each person can add after they reheat.  

Roll into burritos.  Wrap in a paper towel.  Put into a plastic bag and freeze.  

I left a few out for them to eat right away.

Although we almost always have these ingredients on hand the boys wouldn't think to make these on their own.  Takes very little time to put together and they have some quick and easy to grab and go.  They also make great last minute dinners.  

You can also use chicken or steak.  

Homemade Granola bars

What you will need:

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup honey
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
4 cups quick cooking oats
2 cup crispy rice cereal
1 teaspoon vanilla
mini chocolate chips

Directions:
In a small sauce pan heat butter, honey, brown sugar.
Mix your oats and rice krispies in a large bowl.  Set aside.
Let your mixture heat another 2 minutes after you bring it to a boil.
Pull from the heat and add teaspoon of vanilla.
Mix with your dry ingredients.
Pour into a lightly sprayed jelly roll pan or  I lined my pan with waxed paper.
Press mixture down firmly.
Sprinkle with chocolate mini chips.
Let them cool on the counter for a couple hours then cut into bars.
Store at room temperature.

I added some peanut butter to my hot mixture since this household is very fond of peanut butter.  :)
You can change up your dry mixture with whatever you choose.  I used a mixture of quick oats and whole oats.

Homemade Suet

 I have been feeding birds suet for years since my husband is not fond of letting me feed them seed.   You know that seed would fall in our green lush carpet of grass and sprout weeds.  We can not allow that to happen yet I want to feed the birds.
I've been buying the premade suet cakes.  The price, like everything these days, keeps going up.   Prices range from $1 to $2 each.  Doesn't sound like alot until you realize that birds do not eat "like birds!"  I can go through 2 a day.  That would be on a really busy bird day.  That is not typical everyday.
I've found that the birds prefer the peanut butter suet cakes.

My dear friend Gail gave me her recipe for suet that she has been making for many years.  She said it attracts
a wide assortment of birds.  It is quick and easy.

Here's what you need:

1 can shortening  (cheapest you can find)
1 jar of crunchy peanut butter
corn meal
oats
bird seed (optional)

In a large pot melt half of the can of shortening with a full jar of peanut butter.
After you have melted the mixture, turn off the stove.
Mix in bird seed.  I got loose bird seed for $.39 a pound at Charlies.
Add in cornmeal and oats until you get a stiff mixture.
I lined 2 baking pans with waxed paper.  Pour mixture into pans.  Put in the fridge to harden.   Cut into squares to make suet cakes.  I store my suet in the fridge to make them easy to handle and not as messy when filling my holders.
It's been in the 90's the last couple days and my suet hasn't melted.  The birds love it!

Delicious Dinner Rolls

I came across a great recipe on Pinterest a couple months ago for buttery dinner rolls.   I needed something to take for Easter dinner and decided that I was going to make the rolls this year.  No store bought for us thank you.  I was leery about how they'd turn out and if it would be enough since we were having the extended family.  The recipe at first glance looked a little overwhelming for a beginner like myself.  As I got going though it was pretty simple.  The rolls looked store bought and tasted even better.  Everyone loved them.  They are buttery, flaky goodness.
Today I made a batch for the family.  The recipe does make 48 rolls so I decided to add ham and cheese to some of them.  Something quick to grab on the way out the door in the morning.  We had some for dinner and the rest I put in ziploc bags and froze.
Now we will have homemade rolls whenever we want them.

Check out Howdoesshe.com for the full recipe.
This recipe is great for gatherings or to freeze.  No one will believe that you made them.  They look THAT good!
I think I'm going to play around with adding things again.   The ham and cheese tasted awesome!   Maybe I'll try pepperoni and mozzarella.  The oldest kiddo suggested bacon.  Everything's better with bacon, right?!

Iced Coffee Recipe: Low sugar, Low carb

I have had so many people ask me for this recipe.  So here's the story.

I had a love affair with Starbuck's Frappucinos and back in my spend thrift days I'd have no problem dropping $5 for one.  I also like most Americans am overweight.  (ouch.. that hurts to type!)
I discovered The Belly Fat Cure by Jorge Cruise.  This book totally clicked for me.  It explains how our bodies process sugar and carbs.  (My two favorite things!).  My Starbuck's Mocha Frappuccino has 79 grams of sugar in a venti along with 83g of carbs.  According to Jorge you should "try" to stay at 14g of sugar a day and 120g of carbs.   My one drink was 5.64 days worth of sugar and most of my carbs for the day.  One drink!!
He has a recipe for a protein shake in the book that I adapted.

Chocolate Whey Protein
Pure Stevia or a Stevia packet
Coffee
Half and Half
Torani sugarfree syrups (according to taste)

 In my blender ball shaker I add approximately 2 cups of coffee.  I use whatever my husband left me in the morning.
1 scoop of whey protein
1 scoop stevia or a packet
approximately 2 tablespoons of half and half.  I don't measure so much.
Then a shot or two of whatever flavored syrups you like.  Cheapest I've found the syrups is at Sams or World Market.  Jorge's recipe doesn't call for the syrups but I've discovered my drinks are much better with them. I usually use 1 or 2 squirts of chocolate and caramel.
Shake well.   Pour over ice.

You can also use vanilla whey protein.
You can also put all ingredients in a blender with ice for a frappuccino.
The best part is this drink comes in at 2g of sugar and 2g of carbs!   What a difference!  The protein will help fill you up so you can use this as a meal replacement drink instead of just a drink.
I've lost 15 lbs loosely following his plan.  So many are simple swaps.

But don't think this tastes like a DIET!  It's amazing!  I've had many people tell me it's just as good as Starbucks if not better.  Enjoy!!

No bake cake balls. Yumm!

You've heard of  Oreo balls but what about cake balls?

1 ½ cups flour

1 cup yellow cake mix

½ cup butter, softened

½ cup white sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/8 teaspoon salt

5-6 Tablespoons milk

 sprinkles

Vanilla Almond Bark

Blend butter and sugar in mixer.  Then add flour, cake mix, vanilla, and salt.  Mix well.  Then add milk a little at a time until you have a thick batter that you can roll.  Stir in sprinkles.  Optional.

Roll out into balls.  Place on wax or parchment paper.  Put them in the freezer until they firm up.  

Melt your almond bark and then dip your balls.  

I then used green sprinkles since it is close to St Patrick's Day.  

Store in the fridge.  

Peppermint Paddy Martini recipe

This sounds yummy.   I have the extract since we have to make Peppermint Paddy milkshakes every year for St Patrick's Day.  



Peppermint Paddy Martini
Prep Time: 5 minutes
8 ounces Irish cream liqueur
2 ounces crème de cacao liqueur
2 ounces vanilla vodka
2 ounces heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon McCormick
®
Pure Peppermint Extract
Peppermint Whipped Cream, recipe follows (optional)
1. Fill cocktail shaker 1/3 full with ice. Add first 5 ingredients; shake until well mixed and
chilled. Strain into martini glasses.
2. Top each with a dollop of Peppermint Whipped Cream, if desired.
Makes 4 servings.
Peppermint Whipped Cream: Beat 1 cup heavy cream, 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar and
1/4 teaspoon McCormick
®
Pure Peppermint Extract in medium bowl with electric mixer on
high speed until stiff peaks form. Makes about 2 cups.
Test Kitchen Tip:
Wet outside rim of martini glass with McCormick
®
Pure Peppermint Extract. Dip glass in
coarse sugar to lightly coat.

Homemade brownies. Yum.

My first attempt at from scratch brownies.  Turned out pretty yummy and it was simple.

1/2 cup melted butter
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
Mix all ingredients.  Start with sugar and butter and vanilla. Then add dry ingredients.  Pour into greased 8x8 pan. Bake 350 for 30 minutes.

Deep dish breakfast pizza

So another pizza recipe I was telling you about was breakfast pizza.  Today I kicked it up a notch.  I have a 14 inch deep dish pan that I bought to make Chicago deep dish pizza.
I made the basic pizza dough recipe that I posted yesterday.  Go here for that recipe.   I did cut down the water to 3/4 cup and the flour to 2 1/2 cups.
Roll out to cover the pan.  Build it up the sides.  Then add whatever ingredients you have on hand.  I used the last bit of frozen hashbrowns, browned sausage, a tiny bit of spinach (hoping the kiddo wouldn't notice.) ham left over from dinner the other night.  Then I poured 13 scrambled raw eggs over that.   Then add cheese.  I used whatever I had left over.   Which today was mozzarella, cheddar, and colby jack.
I baked for 40 minutes at 350 degrees.
It's going to make a great grab and go breakfast this week.  I got about 14 pieces out of this recipe.

Pizza with a twist

It may be hard to believe but I never used to make my own pizza dough.  It alluded me.  I guess I don't remember my parents ever making their own.  I do remember making homemade pizza but with a prepackaged dough.   Now that I am on my kick to make more from scratch recipes I looked into it.
My first ever attempt with yeast was an epic fail!  I was worried about trying again.  But I had already bought a deep dish pizza pan and I was excited about making a Chicago style pizza.  So I jumped back in.

An easy pizza dough recipe is:


2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, or as needed
1 envelope Fleischmann's® RapidRise Yeast*
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup very warm water (120 degrees F to 130 degrees F)
2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
Cornmeal


Directions

In a large bowl, combine 2 cups flour, undissolved yeast, and salt. Stir very warm water and olive oil into flour mixture. Stir in enough remaining flour to make soft dough. Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 4 to 6 minutes. Cover; let rest on floured surface 10 minutes.
Lightly oil 1 (14-inch) or 2 (12-inch) round pizza pan(s).** Sprinkle with cornmeal. Shape dough into smooth ball. Divide and roll dough to fit desired pan(s). Top pizza as desired.
Bake at 400 degrees F for 20 to 30 minutes or until done. Baking time depends on size and thickness of crust and selected toppings.

I totally disagree with Fleishmann's on when and where to add the yeast.  I add the water to my bowl first then add the yeast.   I think that is why my rolls were an epic fail.  They did not rise.  The yeast never activated.  Anyhooo....  I always add the yeast to my water now and have not had any fails.... yet.

I know many families make homemade pizza so why another recipe now?   Well I had a few little tricks that we use.  The first of which is experiment with your toppings.   I am a meat and potatoes kinda gal so I don't ever go crazy with veggies but you can still mix it up.
One of my all time favorite things to do with pizza dough is to brush the edges with Imo's sweet italian dressing.  If you aren't from the St Louis area you will have no idea what Imo's is.  It's a St L thing.   It doesn't take a lot but it has great flavor when baked into your dough.   I actually would love nothing better than to just drench the whole pizza dough with the dressing and sprinkle it with parmesan and oregano and bake it.  Then cut it into breadsticks.   It is amazing!   BUT today, I needed two pizzas or else I  would have done that.
Another great topping for pizza is chicken.  One of our all time favorite pizzas is a hot sauce chicken pizza.  When I originally started making this I only used chicken and hot sauce (picky remember?).   Now we usually also add sausage and pepperoni or bacon.  It sounds weird but it is delicious. We also change up the cheese.  I found a great shredded mexican melting cheese.  Yum.
Which leads me to one of my all time weird pizza toppings: french fries.  Yes, I said french fries.  The best pizza I ever made was a breakfast pizza... with fries.
On the dough I use hot sauce.  Then add thawed out chopped up fries along with sausage and bacon.  Add raw scrambled eggs and cheese.  Bake through.   Delicious!
Another crazy pizza would be meatball pizza.  Cut meatballs into fourths and use meat sauce instead of pizza sauce.  Add jalapenos.
Go crazy folks.   The possibilities are endless!    

What's the weirdest pizza you've ever made?

Homemade soft pretzels

Today's make from scratch recipe was soft pretzels.  I used to drive to the mall just to get a fresh Auntie Anne's pretzel.   Yumm.   But as we know, they are expensive.  I mean really?!  For dough?  Dough is cheap.  This was my first attempt at ever making pretzels.  I think they turned out pretty good.  They taste amazing.

2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
2 cups warm water (110 degrees to 115 degrees)
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 egg
6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
coarse salt
baking soda


In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add sugar, salt, butter and egg. Stir in 3 cups of flour; mix until smooth. Add enough additional flour to make a stiff dough. Cover bowl tightly with foil; refrigerate for 2-24 hours. Punch dough down and divide in half. On a lightly floured surface, cut each half into 16 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a 20-in. rope. Shape into the traditional pretzel shape and place on a greased baking sheet. Boil  in water with 1/2 cup of baking soda.  One minute each side.  Place back on baking sheet.  Spray with pam.  Sprinkle with salt if desired. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 25 minutes. Bake at 400 degrees F for 15 minutes or until brown.

You can use different flours for taste.  I subsituted 1 cup wheat flour.  You can also use oat flour.  The only thing I may do different next time is bake on parchment paper and give them a brush of melted butter.They took a little practice but it got easier.  It was well worth it.
I made homemade queso for dip.